Chapter 411 The Banquet
Chapter 411 The Banquet
Lenora glanced up to look at the two people beside her
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Upon seeing the two women with Clusian features and the fact that they recognized Clusian words, it was clear that they were part of the local Clusian community.
Lenora didn’t pay them any mind and continued to chat with Sophia.
Indeed, she had never seen anything like this vast estate before.
When the two women noticed Lenora looking their way, their conversation came to a halt. Upon Lenora turning away, they subtly shifted their topic of discussion.
“Bella.”
Within a few minutes, the Clusian woman beside Lenora suddenly shouted and stood up with her companion.
Lenora looked up, only to see Bella approaching with a ball gown in hand.
Bella halted then asked, “Alice, Anya, why are you sitting over here?”
Alice and Anya exchanged a glance, somewhat nervous as they said, “It’s a bit noisy over there, but we should be asking you the same question.considering how busy you are. You don’t have to come over here by yourself; we were just about to head over.”
“In that case, you guys should rest here.”
Bella then bypassed the two individuals and approached Lenora. “Fay.”
A glimmer of admiration flashed in Lenora’s eyes as she put away her phone and stood up. “Bella, you look absolutely stunning today!”
Bella chuckled, taking Lenora’s hand. “You too. Come on now. Since the banquet hasn’t started yet, let me introduce you to my friends.”
Alice and Anya’s faces changed simultaneously as they exchanged a glance.
Bella approached the two of them, introducing Lenora with a smile, “Fay, this is Alice, and this is Anya. Alice, Anya, this is my friend, Fay. You’re all Clusian, so get to know each other. Who knows, you might become good friends in the future.”
“Hello, everyone,” Lenora greeted with a smile.
Alice had long since shed her awkward expression, revealing a warm smile. “Hello,” she greeted.
“Hello,” Anya responded, her lips forcing a smile.
Once Bella had left with Lenora, Anya’s expression darkened. With a dismissive smirk, she said, “This explains it. She has been cozying up to Bella.”
“Keep it down. If someone overhears us and tells Bella, she might just kick us out given her temper,” Alice
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reminded in a mocking tone,
Once they were at a safe distance, Bella whispered to Lenora, “Their fathers are business partners with my dad. That’s the only reason they are invited. That said, I don’t really yet along with the two of them?
The reason was they got along better with Bella’s mortal enemy
Lenora nodded in acknowledgment.
In another corner of the hall, a few young men and women were seated, including both foreigners and Clusians, Jermaine was among them.
Seeing Bella approach, they group began to greet her smilingly.
The atmosphere was light–hearted, and one could tell that these people were good friends with Bella
Bella introduced Lenora to her friends, “This is my university mate, Fay. She recently moved to Fairlake for work. She’s a photographer. I hope you guys can get to know her and support her work”
As soon as the words were spoken, a foreigner chuckled. “So, the picture you posted on Instagram a couple of days ago was taken by Ms. Fay?”
“Yes, it was.”
The man gave Lenora a warm smile. “You have a good eye. If an opportunity comes up, I’ll recomm you to those who need your services.
“Thank you,” Lenora replied with a polite smile.
Bella briefly introduced Lenora to the others, who were Bella’s childhood friends, classmates, and other friends.
They were quite friendly and polite toward Lenora.
During their conversation, they would also subtly include the latter, so she wouldn’t feel left out.
At eight in the evening, the lights in the hall suddenly dimmed. The spotlights then shone on the stage.
“Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Mr. Saltzman’s sixtieth birthday party…”
The birthday party had officially begun.
Ralph Saltzman, Bella’s father, delivered a brief speech on stage.
Following that, the waiter rolled out an extraordinarily large cake.
Bella helped Ralph down the stage, and everyone naturally formed a circle around them. They all extended their wishes to Ralph, who then proceeded to cut the cake.
The place was packed with people, so crowded that it was impossible to move through.
This made for a lively scene, but Lenora couldn’t see anything.
She casually glanced elsewhere, unintentionally catching sight of a familiar figure.
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Chapter 411 The Banquet
Zephyr?
Just as she was about to take a closer look, the figure had already disappeared.
Was I mistaken, or has Zephyr returned to Fairlake?
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Given that Zephyr was a friend of Ezekiel, it was certain that he was originally in Fairlake as well. So, his return was not at all surprising.
Who knows…
Lenora shifted her gaze away.
After cutting the cake, Ralph was to unwrap some gifts on the spot, all of which were presents from his old friends.
After the presents were unwrapped, someone took to the stage to perform.
Meanwhile, Ralph went off to mingle with the guests.
Originally, the intention was to bring Bella along, but Bella had sneakily left his side.
She led Lenora and a group of friends up to the third–floor arcade.
Upon arriving, Lenora realized that the entire third floor was a leisure and entertainment area. It was equipped with all sorts of facilities including poker tables, pool tables, arcade games, and much more. Everything one could possibly need for recreation was there.
As for the second floor, it was a space for singing and dancing, with quite a few guests enjoying themselves there.
Moreover, there was a movie room on the fourth floor.
In other words, the entire castle was built for the sole purpose of entertaining guests and leisure.
As for Bella and Ralph, their residence was situated in the two smaller buildings at the back.
Beyond this, the estate also boasted a basketball court, a bowling alley, a swimming pool, a greenhouse, a spa, and even a helicopter pad.
These were clear testaments to just how vast the estate was.
At eleven in the evening, Bella had someone send Lenora home.
Originally, Bella had intended to have Lenora stay over for the night, and the manor had plenty of guest
rooms.
However, it was Sunday, and the next day was Monday, which was Lenora’s first day at work, so it would be best for her to return home early and rest,
On a Monday morning, Lenora, dressed in a suit and armed with her camera, arrived at the studio.
She arrived rather early, finding the office sparsely populated.
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Chapter 411 The Banquet
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Lilliane had already arrived. She first showed Lenora around the office, then arranged a seat for her, set up her computer, and handed her a new notebook and employee handbook. “Take a look at this first, and let me know if you need anything,” she said.
“Alright, thank you.”
When it was time to start work, there was only one other person around other than Lenora.
Most other photographers essentially had a shooting schedule in place. They would either head straight to an outdoor location or photography studio instead of dropping by their work desks.
Lilliane briefly introduced Lenora to her colleague and handed her some documents.
During the first two days of work, Lenora had no shooting assignments. she spent his time reviewing documents and observing in the photography studio.
By the third day, Lilliane had finally handed Lenora a job. The client’s package was the lowest priced tier within the studio.
The client was a local woman in her mid–twenties. She had scheduled her makeup appointment for eight in the morning. However, due to the lengthy makeup process, Lenora didn’t arrive that early. By the time she reached the makeup studio upstairs at half past eight, the client had just had her base makeup applied. The day before, Lilliane had given Lenora’s contact details to the client. The client briefly expressed their needs over chat messages, and Lenora followed up with them to further confirm the details.
Upon seeing Lenora, the client realized that their photographer was Clusian. They were momentarily surprised but quickly regained composure and earnestly answered Lenora’s questions.
With a rough idea forming in Lenora’s mind, she set off to arrange the shooting set.
The studio provided her with a photography assistant, who would help her set up scenes and adjust the lights, among other things.
Around ten o’clock, after the client had their makeup and hair done, they arrived at the set for shooting.
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